'What Comes Around Goes Around': Democrats Warning Message to GOP As Thune Seeks To Overturn California's EV Mandate

Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) is seeking to overturn California's electric vehicle mandate, a move being criticized by Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) as a "nuclear option."

In December, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under the Biden administration approved a California state rule requiring all new cars sold in the state to be electric or otherwise non-emitting by 2035. Months later, Thune is trying to overturn that.

"This week, we're going to be moving to take up Congressional Review Act resolutions to overturn Clean Air Act preemption waivers the Environmental Protection Agency granted to California that allow California to dictate emission standards for the whole country, effectively imposing a nationwide electric vehicle mandate," Thune said last week in a floor speech.

The Senate could vote on the matter as soon as this Wednesday, despite the Government Accountability Office issuing an opinion saying that the waiver is not a rule and therefore is not subject to the CRA. That opinion was seconded by the Senate parliamentarian.

In response, Schumer warned Thune and other Republicans that "what goes around comes around," threatening to deploy similar strategies to get around opinions by key, nonpartisan rule makers if and when he grabs back control of the chamber, Axios reported. He and other Democratic leaders have described the GOP move as a "nuclear option," a term both parties use for changing the Senate's rules.

Other Democrats have backed Schumer in his rhetoric. For instance, Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), the top Democrat on the Finance Committee, said Tuesday that if Republicans proceed, "they should expect a future Democratic government will have to revisit decades worth of paltry corporate settlements, deferred prosecution agreements, and tax rulings."

"These partisan actions cut both ways," Wyden said.

Republicans haven't yet outlined what procedural hurdles they will need to clear to get the resolutions to final votes of adoption on Wednesday, yet some of them are assuring fellow senators about ignoring the parliamentarian.

Most notably, Senate Rules Chair and former Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), a staunch defender of Senate procedure, spoke in favor of using the CRA during a closed-door lunch last week. His voice was particularly influential for some senators on the fence, according to Axios.

However, Republicans have argued the California waiver is a unique case and that the GAO does not get to decide what rules can be undone. "We are not talking about doing anything to erode the institutional character of the Senate," Thune argued on the Senate floor on Tuesday.

Democrats have also expressed concern over the possibility of Republicans continuing to ignore the parliamentarian, making them willing to flout on other things too, like what policies can and can't be included in the GOP's party-line tax and spending package that could be coming over from the House as soon as this week.